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APCD Courses
The Real Courses 1-6
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Shinnecock
Hills |
Robert
Miller |
7029
yards. Par 70. |
Difficulty
Medium |
USA
Links
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Apr
2007 |
2007
Course of the Year
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Overall
Rank 1st
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Shinnecock Hills Golf Club is a
prestigious link-style golf club located in
Southampton on Long Island, New York and is
ranked up at number two on the latest Golf Digest
US course list. It has hosted the US Open four
times with winners including Ray Floyd in 1986,
Corey Pavin 1995 and Retief Goosen in 2004. The
club was founded in 1891 and was originally laid
out by William Dunn Jr., and was redesigned by
Charles B. Macdonald and Seth Raynor in around
1916, retaining five of Dunn's original holes,
and redesigned again by Howard C. Toomey and
William S. Flynn in 1931, retaining five of
Macdonald and Raynor's holes and the green of a
sixth hole. It is famous for the grand clubhouse
which stands proudly visable over the rolling
prairie like course. This apcd course simulation
begun by Robert Miller with the 3d clubhouse
following his completion of the Bethpage Black
update. He was certainly the right man for this
type of course, his planting effect is clearly
suited to the rolling open landscape of waving
grasses on the links style design, it is inspired
and stunning to look at. A good selection of
trees provide the backdrop at the fringes of the
design, and the occasional unique tee-side tree
is true to the original. The clubhouse is
amazing, and really does make this course extra
special. Playing the course is great fun, in true
links style, your positional play is important
and it definately benefits from a touch of wind
blowing from the north-east. Greens here at the
2004 US Open was immensely fast, almost to the
point of upsetting the professionals, and as the
fairways are not all overly tight, it is good
option to add the speed for a realistic and
challenging game. This course is a prime example
that the USA can produce a great links course,
and Robert Miller has done a superb job of
replicating it. This course is just real looking,
with nice rope style bridges and fences but does
not come with loads of frills and spectacular
enhanced views, just a natural open links view of
rolling grassland framing the fairways, and i
love it.
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Augusta
National |
Andrew
Jones, Anders Bessermann, Mike Jones
& Wayne Hewitt |
7441
yards. Par 72. |
Difficulty
Hard |
Pine
Forest
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Dec
2004 / Apr 2009 |
2004
Course of the Year
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Overall
Rank 2nd
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Augusta
National is arguably the most famous golfing
venue in the world, host to The Masters major
championship event, and number 2 on the Golf
Digest course list. Originally created by Andrew
Jones in 2001, a new version of this famous
course has now been developed, spearheaded by
Andrew and comprehensively assisted by Mike
Jones, Wayne Hewitt and Anders Bessermann. Hardly
any other course has had more care and attention
lavished upon it to make it as accurate and as
immersive as this one. Visually this is
beautiful, its manicured look has been recaptured
with excellent textures and blending. Enclosing
the fairways are the tall pine trees, with
splashes of bright colour from magnolia bushes,
and small pink and white blossomed trees will be
glimpsed to the edges of the holes, it really is
a stunning sight. The tree planting here is
superb, carefully done and nicely varied. The
whole design and lay out is extremely accurate to
the real thing, and captures the quite severe
elevations of the course. White sand bunkers,
doglegs and water hazards guard the toughest
greens on the circuit. This version of the course
has mapped the new yardages, making it an
extremely challenging one to play within Links,
sometimes frustrating and stressfull. There is no
need really to describe the holes to you, suffice
to say you are getting the most accurate
representation of the course that has been done.
The tournament option including clubhouses and
grandstands are all included and modelled in 3D.
The creation of this design has been the
inspiration behind Andrew Jones' new Links
modification called 1.06. This allows the green
speeds and ball roll to closely match the real
thing, whilst also allowing slightly longer
drives off the tee. It really presents a new
gaming option to players and is very realistic
indeed. The download file includes an
astonishingly comprehensive 49 page history and
guide to Augusta by Tom Davidson. Never has a
real course demanded as much attention to detail,
or looked so perfect, and full justice has been
done. Ultimately we are all in debt to those who
have contributed to the furtherance of our
beloved game through this immense project. |
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Merion
(East) |
Dexter
Gresh |
6577
yards. Par 70. |
Difficulty
Medium |
Parkland
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Nov
2003 |
2003
Course of the Year Runner Up
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Overall
Rank 3rd
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The Merion Golf Club,
East Course in Pennsylvania is one of the highest
regarded courses in the world, and is ranked 7th
on Golf Digest's 100 greatest American courses.
The original course design was completed in 1911
by Hugh Wilson who drew on his Scottish roots to
shape the course to include many steep Scottish
style bunkers and wicker flagsticks. In 1930
Bobby Jones completed his grand slam win on this
course with the US Amateur title. US Open major
winners here include Ben Hogan in 1950, Lee
Trevino in 1971 and David Graham when it was last
held on the course in 1981. By todays standards
this is a relatively short course, and its
restrictions on spectator numbers make it perhaps
an unlikely majors venue in the future. However
its history and status as a top competition venue
is assured. Dexter Gresh is possibly known to
some links players for his release of Meadowood
in May 2002, and this latest release is an
absolute gem. The care and attention to detail
that has gone into this creation is oozing from
every screenshot, from the superb set of tree
objects (including many wonderful custom made
ones), through the excellent use of different
ground textures and a patchwork of different wild
dune grass plantings, to the beautiful double
track paths that wind around the holes. It is
truely realistic, and the water textures used for
the rivers, and worn grass around the bunkers are
fabulous. A lovely clubhouse area is viewed
alongside the opening hole, and the other
excellent main buildings around the course also
add to the experience, with a main road also
coming into view from time to time. Whilst the
course is quite short, its par 70 ensures that it
is no easy task to score well on, and the close
proximity of trees and deep grass will always
prove a threat to wayward shots. The course
contains a lovely mix of straight holes, or left
and right doglegs, with also a number of
narrowing fairways to make the more daring
drivers think twice, and it just plays so well
and feels just right. The hole previews and start
up screens are majestic and professional and just
add to the feeling of playing what is a classic
apcd course creation. This is an accurate and
truely detailed and rather special real course
design. |
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Pebble
Beach |
Chuck
Clark |
6840
yards. Par 72. |
Difficulty
Medium |
Coastal
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Jun
2005 |
2005
Course of the Year
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Overall
Rank 4th
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Pebble Beach is one of
the most famous courses in the world and is set
around Stillwater cove in California. Ranked at
number 5 on Golf Digests list, it is a regular
tournament venue on the PGA Tour hosting the
Pro-Am, and is also a classic venue for the US
Open, boasting mature trees, tricky roller
coaster greens and large bunkers, and uses the
natural coastline location as direct hazards for
a number of its awesome holes. Visually this
course is one of the most impressive and
beautiful in the world, with dramatic sea views
creating a unique atmosphere. In 1972 Pebble
Beach hosted its first US Open golf Championship
which was won fittingly by Jack Nicklaus. In 1982
the US Open returned, and featured one of the
most talked about battles between Tom Watson and
Jack Nicklaus, where Watson sunk a chip shot on
the 17th to effectively win. 1992 saw Tom Kite
victorious for his first major, and in 2000 it
hosted the US Open for the 100th anniversary of
the championship, where Tiger Woods captured the
trophy beating his nearest competitor by a
massive 15 strokes. This course famously features
an amazing run of coastline holes from the new
5th hole through to the 10th, returning again for
the most famous drive in golf at the 18th. Pebble
Beach should be well known to most golf fanatics,
and this recreation is not only extremely
accurate but outstandingly beautiful too,
complete with superb planting at ground level and
fabulous buildings throughout (some are 3D
courtesy of Pat Auge). The cliffside holes and
views across the cove are magnificent. The greens
here are small, and the rough set deep according
to US Open traditions. The key to unlocking a
decent score on the course will surely be in
finding the fairways. This is a unique venue, and
Chuck Clark has superbly crafted this accurate
simulation, with realism just oozing from every
view it really captures the way the fairway
slopes make the approach shots extra tricky. His
other releases such as Prairie Dog and Torres
Pines South were also great courses, but this one
tops them all and i am sure will be appreciated
in the same breath as Augusta National. |
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Wagga
Wagga |
Wayne
Hewitt |
6749
yards. Par 72. |
Difficulty
Medium |
Woodland
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Jun
2004 |
2004
Course of the Year Runner Up
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Overall
Rank 5th
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The Wagga Wagga Country
Club is the follow up release to the highly
regarded Tall Pine Estates by Wayne Hewitt. This
is a real course first established in 1895 and
set in New South Wales, Australia. What will
strike you immediately you start playing is the
detail to which the course has been recreated,
not just what you can see in front of you, but
the buildings, roads, power cables, drainage and
signs that are located to the fringes of the
course, and make it much more of a course venue
simulation than a game. This is a woodland
course, trees are in close proximity to the
fairways and will often impact on your shot
selections. The choice of planting is striking,
and this is a generally a bright looking course
with colourful foliage, a rare beast for links
players, but not particularly autumnal in style,
just beautiful to look at and packed full of
excellent custom trees. At ground level the
abundance of texturing is just about the best
seen, with loads of different shades and
comprehensive blending, and with long dry grass
to the edges of the deeper rough. Unlike the
designer, I havent ever played this course in
real life, but this really does give you the
feeling that Wayne has captured the course as
close it can possibly be. Often real courses play
a little on the easy side, but this one is clever
and play is set seemingly just right, with
doglegs, bunkers and criss-crossing streams
impacting on your distances, you really do have
to think your way around here. I find this a very
immersive design, the whole feel of the course is
of visual beauty, and at the end of the round is
the added bonus of overlooking a superb lagoon
panorama. It is worth noting that the tournament
crowd option here is extensive, and just listen
for all the local bird sounds too. This is a
course packed full of little details, it looks
extremely pretty, is somewhat unique too in its
appearance and is so delightful to play. |
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The
Brabazon at The Belfry |
Dark
Horse Team |
7120
yards. Par 72. |
Difficulty
Medium/Easy |
English
Parkland
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Apr
2003 |
2003
Course of the Year Runner Up
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Overall
Rank 6th
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The Brabazon course at
The Belfry is quite simply one of my favourite
real life courses, designed by Peter Allis and
Dave Thomas, it is the host course for the annual
Benson & Hedges European Tour event, and
features some quite fantastic holes for drama and
risk reward. It is also the place for Europeans
to enact the dramatic wins for the European Ryder
Cup team in 1985 and 2002. The Links LS version
has been around for a lifetime now, featuring the
1985 lay out, it still looks pretty good and is
actually tougher to play than this newer lay out
and design. However this apcd version is far and
away the best version of the course ever made.
This is the debut release for the Dark Horse Team
comprising famous designer names John Pineda,
Eddie Schmidt, Kevin Fraser, Lars Rudbeck, John
Dudis, Andrew Jones, Anders Bessermann and
Dlunatic, and the team approach has certainly
worked well. If you follow golf then the course
should need little explanation, a superb parkland
challenge with plenty of water hazards, a most
famous drivable par 4 at the 10th and a finishing
hole which throws up a real nervy tee and
approach shot. To play this course is a delight,
and whilst this version is not overly tough,
tweaking the conditions will truly yield a
magnificent challenge. It is hard to see how this
replica could have been made any better really,
the parkland planting is consistent with the
location, the wooden edging to the lakes and
streams is excellent, and the 3 dimentional
clubhouse, buildings and bridges are so accurate
its an amazing credit to the team, and certainly
enough to make your eyes light up when you see
the clubhouse area. The new textures too are
superb, and together with the mown grass lines it
really works well, and the course even holds some
subtle visual variations too in textures from
hole to hole. Crowds are extensive in a Ryder Cup
style to add a real atmosphere. I havent
revealed too much of what you will see, you know
by now how the course should look Im sure,
and this is an amazingly accurate replica. It is
one of my favourite courses in real life and
equally one of the greatest apcd designs ever
made. |
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